Fabulous Moolah vs Joyce Grable & Trish Stratus vs Mickie James

Many of us consider the 2000-06 era the high point of women's wrestling, when a group of women elevated it to a level of popularity it had never achieved before, and has never achieved since. But, there are some naysayers, who talk about the old territory days. They say "Trish, Lita, Victoria, Molly, and the rest were OK, but they weren't on the level of the Fabulous Moolah and Joyce Grable."

Well, let's compare. In the interests of fairness, as Vince used to say, I'm not even going to use the most famous Trish/Mickie match, just their very first one. Also, Joyce's main signature move is one fans of the 2000-06 era know very well, as one of that generation used a modified version of it as a homage to her.


The Fabulous Moolah vs Joyce Grable, November 22, 1976





Trish Stratus vs Mickie James, January 8, 2006





And, for the hell of it, the post-match interview setting up who'll make this a 3 way feud down the line by targeting them both...





Sure, the 2000-06 group didn't have the sheer physical size of Moolah and company (Even Victoria was way thinner), but Trish and company had way better physical conditioning. They were more muscular, faster, more athletic. Trish, if their respective billed weights are to be believed, was only 13 pounds lighter than Moolah. But, Trish's pounds were all muscle.

The style of matches was completel different, too. Less rest holds (Notice how long it took Moolah just to remove her robe). High impact moves that looked like they really hurt.

Back in Moolah's generation, women's wrestling was a gimmick, like midget wrestling. It wasn't as physical as what the men did. They weren't going to be genuinely busted up in a match like we often saw with during the Stratus era, where Trish, over the years, had her nose broken, was bloodied up, had black eyes, and lost half a tooth. Women just never took those risks in the old days. Even Chyna didn't. Chyna, I think, can be considered the last of the Old School gimmick woman wrestlers.

But, let's not take away from Moolah, and what she accomplished. Sure, women's wrestling was a gimmick, but she made it a popular gimmick for decades. Which brings us to why I don't like the Diva's Championship.

The Women's Championship dated back to 1935, and the first Women's World Champion, Mildred Burke. When Moolah got the title in 1956, she defended it all around the world, in every promotion, along the way having her own custom belt made to represent the Women's World Championship. She sold that belt to the WWF in 1983.

So, when Trish Stratus and Mickie James were feuding for the Championship in 2006, it was an over 70 year legacy they were fighting over. Other promotions had their Women's Champions, but this was the Women's Championship, the one held by Mildred Burke, June Byers, the Fabulous Moolah, Wendy Richter, Sensational Sherri, and Bull Nakano. It held a lineage, legacy, and prestige that the Knockout and Shimmer titles couldn't touch.

The Diva's Championship, while a brand name unique to WWE, loses all that, rendering it nothing more than the Knockout and Shimmer titles. Of course, that also means they don't fel any pressure to put any effort into it as they would with a Championship with 76 years of history.

But, it's not like Kelly Kelly would be the worst wrestler ever to hold the Women's Championship. She's better than Sable and Debra and Miss Kitty were, certainly. If they must have that butterfly belt, why not just call it the Women's Championship? I much preferred the old belt, which looked like, well, a Champion's belt, but fine. Stress the history and legacy. Because, it's a history and legacy worth keeping.

Also miss the Hardcore and Cruiserweight Championships, by the way. Trish actually held 8 Championships in the company, and Molly and Jacqueline 3 each, because Trish and Molly were Hardcore Champions and Jacqueline a Cruiserweight Champion. Though, I do understand why you can't have the Hardcore title in the PG Era.